Mnemophobia
by Al-497
Summary: She's stuck on Earth, and she isn't welcome. She's tried to adapt, and slowly but surely, her life has evolved into some type of relative norm. That is, until, three students from Gotham Academy transfer to Jump High and take what little normal she had in her life and flipped it upside down. AU Titan formation. Robstar, maybe BBRae and Flinx. Definitely better on the inside.


From the moment Koriand'r landed on Earth, she knew that she would never truly belong. From day one, she had foreseen problems adjusting to an entirely new lifestyle and culture. But she had never imagined how difficult and utterly painful it could be. Never did she think that people would not accept her as an alien, never had she thought her powers would make her nothing here, whilst back on her home planet they gave her everything. Power, bravery, beauty… On Earth she was weak, cowardly and ugly. She was not fit for the title of a Tamaranean Princess. Nor was she fit to call herself a Tamaranean at all,for her people are resiliant and unwielding warriors.

But on Earth, none of that matters. She is simply a freak. Her escape pod had crash landed in a small city in Northern California called Jump. After months of being investigated by the Justice League and evaluated on her stability, they allowed the seventeen year old to make a life of her own in Jump, provided she check in with them weekly and never use her powers. They gave her the alias of Kori Anders, local student currently living with her aunt, Beatrice Glouday, an ally of the League, willing to take the young alien in as a refugee of war and instruct her on the ways of Earth culture. Granted, at first it was a difficult adjustment, and oftentimes Kori was unable to refer to herself by her new name, nor was she able to navigate her day without the use of her powers.

She felt completely and utterly useless, as well as bitter. Bitter at the Gordanians and Citadel for attacking her planet and forcing her and her siblings to escape. She could only pray to X'hal that Komand'r and Ryand'r's pods had remained attached, unlike her own. Bitter at the Justice League for not extending her a membership, and instead enlisting her in high school, where the curriculum is that of a small child on her own planet. She was bitter at Beatrice for not teaching her common Earth slang, and she was bitter with the people of Earth for not understanding. Few at her school even knew her name. Not that it mattered to her, she held her head high at all times, regardless of the odd glanced her height and exceptionally tan skin gained her. To her dismay, the Justice League had ordered her to wear a holographic ring at all times. It shortened her a few inches (she would not allow for much more) and caused her sclera's to turn a milky white rather than their dull emerald. Another reason to add to her bitterness.

The way Kori saw it, she was a coward for abondoning her family in their time of need. She hadn't heard from her k'norfka or her parents for three years- three years since they day she and her siblings departed Tamaran in a last-minute, desperate attempt to save the royal bloodline. She missed her family every day, and her abondonment left a constant ache in her heart. To document this, she had a tattoo artist tattoo the word 'Princess' into her shoulder written in ancient Tamaran. This displeased the Justice League, but there was not much they could do.

She proudly displayed her tattoo wherever she went, regardless of the glowers she received in the school halls by teachers and other females, and despite the various cat calls of the males. She did not pay mind to any of her so-called peers, namely due to the lack of maturity and intelligence, but also because they paid no heed to her. She was simply the quiet "freak" in the background. Oftentimes, she sat by herself in the back of class, always writing feverishly in her odd notebook, decorated in odd circles and dashes, drawing strange symbols, however managing to pass each class with flying colors.

Soon, she simply blended in completely, and people stopped going out of there way to insult or to throw her books from her arms in the halls. Even when the other students acted out so cruelly towards her, she chose to simply ignore them. Stooping to their primeval behavior was pointless and would certainly gain her nothing, apart from a very serious visit to the Justice League and a relocation, both things she did not want. Although she was not fond of the city she and her "aunt" resided in, it was comfortable and had grown to be normal for her.

In her crazy life, normal was a good thing to have around. Normal was a sign that something would remain constant- that something would be there to anchor her to her sanity on those days that she slipped, that her family's faces and those of her subjects flooded her memories and the smell of fresh blood seeped into her nostrils, burning her nose and throat until nothing could be done but sob broken, retched sobs until the episode passed.

And each time, normal was their to drag her back.

Unfortunately, normal was about to change.

…

The alarm blared in her ear and she groaned warily, lighting a weak starbolt in her fist and shooting at the device. She opened her eyes and sat up slowly, attempting to rub the tiredness from them. Her homework from the day before lay strewn about her bed, she must've fallen asleep working on it.

"Kori?" her aunt called, stepping into the room. "You'll be late to school if you don't hurry!" She glanced at the smoking clock on the night table and sighed. "This is the third clock you've destroyed this month! If this keeps happening I'll have no choice but to inform the League."

Kori rolled her eyes and stepped out of her bed, muttering annoyedly. "I need to shower."

Her aunt stepped to the side. "Hurry, please. I don't want to have to drive you because you're too late to walk."

The alienness nodded, slipping by Beatrice and into the hall. She snatched a towel from the linen closet and disappeared into the bathroom. Soon steam could be seen drifting from underneath the door and the shower was running.

Beatrice sighed, leaning against the doorframe. She had heard Kori screaming all night, shouting things in her native tongue and sobbing. She had attempted to wake her, but the nightmares had too strong of a hold on the girl, and her screaming hadn't stopped until two. She didn't think Kori could remember the dreams, she never mentions them. Not that she would to Beatrice, or anyone for that matter. Kori is strictly a private person, and never initiates interaction and oftentimes doesn't respond to conversations directed at her, unless it is about something that interests her.

Living with her was a lonely sacrifice, but Beatrice still held hope that if the right friend were to come along, Kori would be a happy girl and hopefully able to become a relatively content life on Earth. What she didn't know that the right people planned on walking into her life today.

…

Kori sat against the back wall of her Philosophy and Literature classroom, her arms crossed. Although she seemd to be ignoring the lessson, government was actually one of the few classes that interested her. She excelled at all of them, but most of her success came from her heavy schooling back on Tamaran, rather than the trivial knowledge passed out like candy in these classrooms. It was Tamaranean belief that true knowledge was not obtained by time spent in a classroom whilst having book after book shoved under one's nose, rather it was about self-discovery. Therefore, when each student reached the age of fifteen they were sent on a journey of empowerment, to discover themselves and their true passions. Kori's consisted mainly of helping the poor souls amongst her people and acting as a vigilant and saving the day. In Earth culture, she would be referred to as a "super hero".

"Miss Anders?"

Kori's head snapped up. "Yes?"

"I asked if you could please remind the class what the idea of existentialism is about. Afterall, that is what we're discussing at the moment, should you care to join us."

Kori sighed, "Existentialism is the basic idea of human rights. No choices can be made for us, we must make our own choices. If we refuse, then we become contemptable. We, as a people, make choices for ourselves and must be aware of the consequences."

Her teacher harrumphed. "Very well said. Now, class, I believe we have our latest assignment to turn in."

There was a loud shuffling as student moved papers around in their binders, searching for whatever essay Mr. Goodman assigned last class. Kori, of course, didn't move. Her essay had been turned in at the beginning of class, as instructed on the board.

A small girl sniffled to the left of her and Kori glanced over as a small tear slipped down the girls cheek. Her face was flushed as she ripped her binder apart. "I swear I did it!" she cried, somewhat panicked.

Kori rolled her eyes as the girl insisted on the whereabouts of her assignemt as Mr. Goodman stopped in front of her desk. He simply placed a hand on her shoulder and asked her to bring it in to him next class for half credit. The girl nodded feebly before slumping into her chair and pulling her hood over her head.

As Mr. Goodman made his way down the last row and up into hers, a loud, resounding knock came at the classroom door. "Answer it," he called, checking a boys paper.

The door opened and a black-haired boy stood there, dressed in black jeans, a blue t-shirt and a black leather jacket. His hair was spiked and his eyes were a bright blue. He was incredibly attractive, to say the least.

He held up a pass. "Is this Mr. Goodman's block four Philisophy and Lit class?"

Goodman nodded. "And you are?"

"Dick Grayson, I just moved her from Gotham." He shrugged. "I thought everyone knew I was coming."

Mr. Goodman chuckled. "Well, Mr. Grayson, you may take your seat next to Ms. Anders here. This class has an odd number of students and I know she's been longing for a partner for our paired activities."

Kori's eyes widened before settling into a narrowed glare at her teacher. He smiled warmly at her as he held up her finished paper. "It's good, Kori."

"So why exactly am I being punished?" she hissed.

"I wouldn't call this a punishment," Goodman murmured as Dick took his seat next to her. "He's a mildly attractive young man, and you are a lonely high school student. I assumed I was doing you a favor." He turned to Dick and smiled tightly, extending his free arm. "Gordon Goodman, Goodman to students. Kori here is an exceptional student, so if you ever need any help catching up I'd suggest talking to her. She'd be very willing to help."

It took all of Kori's will not to scoff at her teacher as he handed Dick the semester outline and various texts that the class referred to. Goodman made his way to the front of the room. "Alright, kiddos. Take out your personal reading choices and began to make your way through them as Ms. Anders cathces our new philosopher up to date."

Dick turned to Kori, a smirk on his lips. "Dick Grayson."

"I heard the first time you introduced yourself," she muttered, ignoring his outstretched hand.

He chuckled. "I take it you're not too friendly, which really sucks. I'm new here, I need a friend."

Kori raised an eyebrow. "Trust me, Grayson. You won't have much trouble making plenty of friends with those looks."

"Ah, but I don't want a fuck-buddy," he said. "I actually want a friend. I need someone to show me the ropes, and I need someone smart who's not shallow and obsessed with my striking looks to do so."

She rolled her eyes, gathering her things and shoving them into her bag. "Then I suggest finding Victor Stone. He's a great guy, and somehow manages to tolerate everyone, even egotistical douche bags like yourself. I'm sure he'll be able to show you around."

Dick stood, as well. "Wow. You've barely spoken with me for five minutes and you've already decided I'm a douchebag?"

She smiled sweetly at him. "I didn't even need to talk to you to get that impression," she replied, shrugging her bag on. "You said your name was Dick, right?"

He nodded, his gaze icy. "Thought you heard it the first time?"

She chuckled. "Hm. Whoever named you must've done something right, because the name certainly fits." She turned on her heel and left the classroom, leaving Dick standing there, stunned.

A low chuckle shook him back to reality. "Ah, yes. Mr. Grayson, we all knew you were coming," Goodman said. "You've quite the reputation as the school badboy. Breaking hearts, windows, people… And if anyone's going to teach you to behave, it will be Ms. Anders." He smiled to himself. "I believe you two will become great friends during your time together in my class."

…

Kori sat at her usual spot in the lunch room, a small table in the corner. She sipped her peach juice slowly, savoring the taste. On Tamaran, duch delicacies were unheard of and she swore to herself the day she would returned she would do everything in her power to add peaches to the food chain.

"Hey, little lady."

Kori glanced up as Victor Stone set his tray down next to her. Although Victor was preppy and just as annoying as every other football player, he was also smart and a thoughtful person. She wouldn't necessarily call him a friend, but he was the closest she had to one. "Vic."

Two people stood behind him, one a short boy with green hair and an awful underbite on one of his canines, the other a pale girl with black hair and black eyes. "This is Garfield Logan and Rachel Roth, they both transferred here from Gotham, along with Dick Grayson, whom I believe you've already had the pleasure of meeting."

Kori scoffed. "I sincerely hope you used the term pleasure loosely just then."

Vic raised a brow. "Very loosely. Anyway, these guys need a place to sit and based on what Rachel here has told me, she hates everyone about as much as you do. I figured you two could become friends."

Kori shrugged, moving her tray slightly to make room for the girl. The girl offered a small smile before dropping into her seat across from Kori, Garfield quickly following suit. Victor ruffled Garfield's hair, earning a toothy smile from the boy and nudged Rachel's arm. "Let me know if Kori starts to get all condescending on your asses, I'll straigten her up."

Kori rolled her eyes. "As if. Off to join your super jock friends?"

Vic stuck his tongue out at her. "As a matter of fact, I am. I'll see you in Trig, okay?"

The redhead nodded idly, waving him off. She turned to face Rachel and Garfield. "So, uh, you two know Grayson?"

Rachel huffed. "Unfortunately. We all moved here together when we got kicked out of Gotham Academy."

"How'd you manage that?" Kori asked, furrowing her brow.

Rachel and Garfield exchanged wary glances. "We didn't agree with the policies," Garfield muttered.

Kori shrugged. "Whatever you did, it sure must've been outrageous, considering your parents decided to move you cross country."

Rachel nodded. "I can't say I blame them. We earned a reputation of sorts in Gotham. Dick especially. It was time for us to move on."

Garfield nodded. "Besides, California beaches are way warmed than Gotham's! I might be able to catch a tan," he exclaimed.

"If you enjoy crowded, smelly places covered in litter and people wearing bathing suits about eight sizes to small, you've come to the right place."

Rachel snickered slightly. "Maybe Victor was right. I can definitely see myself getting to know you," she murmured.

Kori smiled, and for the first time since she came to Earth, it felt genuine.


End file.
